Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 8, 2013

The feedback was good, but some readers asked me to be a bit more specific on attributes that might indicate an ideal startup partner. In this context, I’m broadening the definition of partner from co-founder to “business partner.” You may be too independent to be partner material. Does not need to be managed.

Partner 258

Partner Software Review CTO Hire Equity 258

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 15, 2019

The challenge is to recognize and recruit that ideal partner match early with minimal cost and risk. In fact, I would broaden the definition of partner from co-founder to “business partner.” The reason is that good attributes apply equally well to “external” partners, as they do to internal partners, like a co-founder or CTO.

Cofounder 221

Cofounder Software Review CTO Hire Founder 221

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 16, 2017

The challenge is to recognize and recruit that ideal partner match early with minimal cost and risk. In fact, I would broaden the definition of partner from co-founder to “business partner.” The reason is that good attributes apply equally well to “external” partners, as they do to internal partners, like a co-founder or CTO.

Partner 140

Partner Software Review CTO Hire Cofounder 140

The Startup Magazine

SEPTEMBER 15, 2020

It is possible to attract a venture capital partner with an idea for a business, but most deals are closed after the business has a founding team , a minimum viable product or MVP, and customers. They may be interested in consumer products, software, fintech, AI, or green technologies. Due Diligence and Closing the Deal.

Venture Capital 144

Venture Capital Technical Review Software Review Security 144

Gust

APRIL 13, 2014

The feedback was good, but some readers asked me to be a bit more specific on attributes that might indicate an ideal startup partner. In this context, I’m broadening the definition of partner from co-founder to “business partner.” You may be too independent to be partner material. Does not need to be managed.

Partner 179

Partner Software Review CTO Hire Fractional CTO 179

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 29, 2011

A while back I talked about how and where to find a co-founder in “ Ten Steps in Choosing the Right Startup Partner ”. The feedback was good, but some readers asked me to be a bit more specific on attributes that might indicate an ideal startup partner. You may be too independent to be partner material. Compatible work styles.

Partner 240

Partner Software Review CTO Hire Fractional CTO 240

The Startup Magazine

FEBRUARY 11, 2022

With over three decades of experience in private equity investments, acquisitions and mergers, Mark Hauser has developed a keen ability to recognize trends and do his due diligence.

Private Equity 128

Private Equity Equity Technical Review Software Review 128

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 17, 2013

A while back I received a discouraging note from an entrepreneur with a patent and a medical software application who couldn’t find a dime of investment, and was grousing that seed funding just wasn’t available anymore. Failure to prepare for due diligence. Not doing due diligence on the funding source.

Software Review 265

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Startup 265

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 24, 2010

The feedback was good, but some readers asked me to be a bit more specific on attributes that might indicate an ideal business partner. In this article, I’m broadening the definition of partner from co-founder to “business partner.” You may be too independent to be partner material. Does not need to be managed.

Partner 230

Partner Software Review CTO Hire Fractional CTO 230

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 30, 2014

They had been introduced by my friend Brian Garrett, a partner at Crosscut Ventures and the ambition outlined in their deck seemed almost unbelievable, “to make wireless charging of phones (and other devices) as easy as WiFi” that I had to see it for myself. We hired IP specialists to review prior art. It was impressive.

Technical Review 418

Technical Review Software Review Due Diligence CTO Hire 418

David Teten

DECEMBER 3, 2019

But in business, you want a lot of partners. However, in private markets, there is more room to optimize across all 11 steps of the investing process: firm management , marketing, fundraising , origination , manage relationships, due diligence, negotiation, monitoring, portfolio acceleration , reporting, and. 2) Market .

Technical Review 78

Technical Review Software Review Analytics Private Equity 78

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 10, 2012

A while back I received a discouraging note from an entrepreneur with a patent and a medical software application who couldn’t find a dime of investment, and was grousing that seed funding just wasn’t available anymore. Failure to prepare for due diligence. Not doing due diligence on the funding source.

Software Review 250

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Entrepreneur 250

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 9, 2018

You race back to the office to tell everybody how well it went and you wait for the follow-up call to have a partners’ meeting or talk about term sheets or at least dip into due diligence. That way when my partners in are in …. there is a reason for us to re-engage because they never met that partner before.

Software Review 381

Software Review Churn Rate Due Diligence New York 381

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 9, 2011

A while back I received a discouraging note from an entrepreneur with a patent and a medical software application who couldn’t find a dime of investment, and was grousing that seed funding just wasn’t available anymore. Failure to prepare for due diligence. Not doing due diligence on the funding source.

Software Review 246

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Early Stage 246

YoungUpstarts

DECEMBER 22, 2016

Running a business is never easy and since software became part of the business ecosystem, things have only gotten more complicated. Project management software can be especially tricky to choose since there are too many choices and as many different situations as there are companies in the world. Everyone wants that.

Software Review 100

Software Review Software Management Technical Review 100

The Startup Magazine

APRIL 2, 2020

For startups established as an LLC, the operating agreement is the original blueprint that specifies how the company will be run and which members (partners) hold which responsibilities, among other concerns such as profit-sharing. Be able to prove due diligence whenever you can. You must abide by your operating agreement.

Software Review 114

Software Review Intellectual Property Limited Liability Company IP 114

David Teten

JANUARY 23, 2021

I’ve been fortunate to be a Partner at two different VC firms over the past 9 years, and we’ve grown AUM 10X both times. Build the firm as much as possible before you solicit limited partners. . The next best move is to build your core team, e.g., recruit an Advisory Board, Venture Partners, and EIRs. Lastly, gather feedback.

Private Equity 78

Private Equity Venture Capital Technical Review Software Review 78

NZ Entrepreneur

AUGUST 4, 2021

Byron van Vugt from NZ Growth Capital Partners explains. Again, use this as an opportunity to pique their interest – and ultimately, land follow-up meetings or enter due diligence. Due diligence, information memorandums & data rooms. Byron van Vugt is a senior investment analyst at NZ Growth Capital Partners.

Technical Review 61

Technical Review Software Review Founder Due Diligence 61

The Startup Magazine

NOVEMBER 28, 2018

I work in technology where the dress code is relaxed, but an executive woman my age can wear neither a hoodie nor a stuffy suit.). I traveled around recruiting a fantastic starting lineup of designer partners to build their stores on the Balodana marketplace, and I left my CMO job in March 2018 to build the prototype and the business.

Technical Review 152

Technical Review Software Review Illinois Due Diligence 152

Berkonomics

AUGUST 27, 2020

A “deal room” is a cloud-based or physical space dedicated to storing the massive amounts of data to be used in due diligence by a buyer, lender or by an investor. That’s a comprehensive piece on a company for use by a buyer in determining fit. Your data room and its contents. Who will use it and when? When to start a data room?

Software Review 62

Software Review Due Diligence Intellectual Property IPO 62

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 15, 2017

Security-focused code reviews and rigorous penetration testing are also highly recommended. Of all the security threats mentioned here, this is probably the one that requires most due diligence and is the most difficult to identify. Using a strong defense strategy to counter cyber threats and data breaches.

Security 140

Security Software Review Technical Review API 140

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 7, 2014

I had dinner this week with a top new customer at one of our enterprise software investments. I wish I did more enterprise software investing because when I attend meetings like this I realize that this is my core DNA – rolling out business software solutions to customers. You can’t. Many people advise against this.

Software Review 341

Software Review Customer Technical Review LP 341

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 18, 2017

A recent Harvard Business Review (HBR) report , created in partnership with Scout RFP , highlighted this lag and its possible ramifications. While accounting and ERP software have traditionally been digital drivers of change, finance leaders must begin to look outside of finance-specific tools to jumpstart overall business transformation.

Technical Review 124

Technical Review Finance Software Review Due Diligence 124

The Equity Kicker

DECEMBER 5, 2013

As I’ve written before here at Forward Partners we work with entrepreneurs to help them launch and scale their companies in two different ways. You will either be building an ecommerce brand that people will love, or supplying software and services into the ecommerce sector. Both sides are free to walk away.

Partner 117

Partner Software Review eCommerce Due Diligence 117

YoungUpstarts

JUNE 17, 2015

By Janis Kestenbaum , a partner in Perkins Coie. Privacy issues that come to light in the course of the due diligence process for an acquisition can also threaten their valuation. In fact, VCs increasingly report that privacy can affect a startup’s ability to raise capital. Say what you do.

Software Review 100

Software Review Technical Review Due Diligence Startup 100

YoungUpstarts

JUNE 20, 2016

However, virtual data room software came as a huge relief to many companies because it reduced wastage of time and numerous expenses made to physically store data. The old PDRs were quite cumbersome due diligence processes. These cloud based software programs are connected and operated on extranet.

Software Review 100

Software Review Technical Review Due Diligence Security 100

The Equity Kicker

SEPTEMBER 24, 2014

We see this all the time at Forward Partners where we invest right from the idea stage and most of the companies get a first version of their product live for less than £30k (that generally includes founder salaries and time spent doing customer research). Forward Partners and Crowdcube are both attacking elements of these problems.

Early Stage 119

Early Stage Development Team Review Technical Review Software Review 119

Up and Running

SEPTEMBER 15, 2014

Here are my 10 tips (oh, and by the way, I did raise venture capital for Palo Alto Software at one point, and I’ve been a consultant to venture capital for 35 years). Your chances are way better if you fit their normal profile and you’ve been able to meet one of the partners, or get an introduction from somebody they know.

Software Review 124

Software Review Due Diligence Venture Capital Elevator Pitch 124

NZ Entrepreneur

MAY 31, 2021

The Angel Association of New Zealand ( AANZ ) is co-hosting with New Zealand Growth Capital Partners ( NZGCP ) a series of workshops on early-stage investment. Andrew Chen shares his takeaways from the second instalment on Portfolio Management, held in Wellington on 13 May 2021.

Portfolio 81

Portfolio New Zealand Management Technical Review 81

Up and Running

SEPTEMBER 10, 2014

Angels invest in one out of every forty deals they review (2.5%) versus the one out of 400 by VC’s (0.25%). They are professionals with full-time jobs, who often don’t have time for due diligence (and may not even know how to do it) and often make decisions through trusted referrals or based on gut feelings (more on gut feelings later).

Angel Investor 159

Angel Investor Technical Review Software Review Accredited Investor 159

VC Cafe

JULY 5, 2010

The workshop participants, of which there were about 30, brought diverse experience and expertise to the table – from young entrepreneurs with just a few years of experience in the consumer web, to seasoned executives with decades of experience in semiconductors, telecommunications and enterprise software.

Software Review 116

Software Review Technical Review Community Due Diligence 116

Austin Startup

SEPTEMBER 18, 2017

Even when someone is aware of what a CTO does, they often have limited context due to the wide variety of CTO roles. They will manage the steps necessary to identify, select, and integrate your software and IT vendors, including third party product dependencies, email, network, wiki, intranet, project management, and telecommunications.

Fractional CTO 54

Fractional CTO CTO Hire CTO Technical Review 54

Berkonomics

OCTOBER 3, 2013

A “deal room” is an electronic or physical space dedicated to storing the massive amounts of data to be used in due diligence by a buyer, lender or by an investor. That’s a comprehensive piece on a company for use by a buyer in determining fit. Email readers, continue here.]

Software Review 76

Software Review Due Diligence Liquidity Event Intellectual Property 76

SoCal CTO

JANUARY 26, 2010

I provided a whole set of questions that I go through with founders before Startup Software Development – Do Your Homework Before You Develop Anything. What existing systems will we leverage, what programming languages, software development methodologies, web application frameworks, revision control systems, etc.? Accounting?

CTO 225

CTO Fractional CTO CTO Hire Technical Review 225

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 5, 2014

I told her that I believed America’s best asset – driven initially from software innovation mindset in the San Francisco Bay Area and media innovation driven from Los Angeles – was our willingness to accept failure. Now they are partners. Are we right in all of our assumptions and diligence? We checked safety.

Technical Review 417

Technical Review South Korea San Francisco Software Review 417

David Teten

JULY 25, 2011

If you’re looking for more thoughts on the event, check out Ryan Kim ’s GigaOM post. Each of the startups made a solid case for the unique value proposition their technology would provide to the financial sector.

Software Review 114

Software Review New York City Technical Review Due Diligence 114

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 16, 2016

After viewing your slide deck, if investors are still interested in your startup, they will ask for a deep-dive meeting to drill in on any hard questions before commencing due diligence. Growth hackers are the marketing equivalent of clever software hackers and are highly respected by investors. Sweat equity.

Software Review 120

Software Review Sweat Equity Accredited Investor Angel Investor 120